About 125 career seekers attended the ninth annual Marine & Composites Industry Career Day last Saturday at the International Yacht Restoration School’s Newport, R.I., campus.
Representatives of 38 companies from eight states came ready to discuss marine career and training opportunities. Organizers said the number of companies and career seekers set a record for the event.
The free one-day event, hosted by the IYRS School of Technology & Trades and the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association (RIMTA), gives employers an opportunity to connect with people seeking careers in the industry.
Organizers say local businesses report a continued post-recession rebound. A skills-gap study being conducted for RIMTA projects that by 2020, Rhode Island’s marine industry will need to hire an additional 1,800 workers. Seventy-one percent of those projected hires will be replacements for baby boomers who are aging out of the work force. The scenario translates to an opportunity for skilled workers.
Two seminars were offered at Career Day: Neal Harrell, of the Brooks Marine Group, discussed “Navigating Your Job Search in Today’s Economy”; and Neal Williamson, of Hodgdon Yachts in East Boothbay, Maine, spoke on “Diversification of the Boatbuilding Industry and the Skills Needed to Succeed in a Changing Environment.”
Watch for further coverage of the event in the May issue of Soundings Trade Only.
